Professor Garel Rhys emphasised the importance of the used car market at the CAR Conference, which formed part of the Auto Africa Expo in Johannesburg.
Professor Garel Rhys emphasised the importance of the used car market at the CAR Conference, which formed part of the Auto Africa Expo in Johannesburg.
Rhys, director of the Centre for Automotive Industry Research at the University of Cardiff, was discussing changes in the international motor industry. He said the used car market was one of the main foundations of the car industry.
“The used car market keeps the car industry churning. There is no social downside to buying used cars,” he said.
Rhys said that car owners did not keep cars as long as they had previously. “The car lasts a long time, but not for one person. It gets passed on,” he said.
An increasing number of manufacturers are realising this and seeking the advantages of the used car market.
In South Africa, used cars are often marketed as “previously owned” cars and some manufacturers have special used car divisions, inviting car owners to sell their cars back to the manufacturer for resale.
Rhys said there were various reasons for buying a used car. Most consumers simply cannot afford to buy new. Others see it as a better value for money option, others simply always buy used cars and some are worried about the depreciation of new cars.
He pointed out that for every one new car car sold in Europe, 2,8 used cars were sold.
Brand Pretorius, chairman of McCarthy Motor Holdings and chairman of the CAR Conference, on Wednesday agreed that the used car market had enormous potential. “The used car market has always been treated like a stepchild in South Africa,” he said.
On the subject of new cars, Rhys said it was the age of the supermini in Europe. This is in line with a report on CARtoday.com this week that BMW had forecast 2002 sales of 150 000 for the Mini after initially expecting to sell 100 000. Rhys said the supermini category had 24,7 per cent of the market in 1990, and this increased to 31,5 per cent in 2001.
Rhys also touched on the importance of the motor industry. “The value of the world market is enormous. It’s worth about 850 billion pounds. That’s why
countries want a motor industry, to get some of these investments,” he said.